Today I was making a sandwich for lunch, I scoured my fridge for tomatoes but none were around. I did some quick thinking, walked out back and plucked a tomato. No trip to the store, no unwanted chemicals, no cash exchanged hands, but I still got a slick of tomato on my sandwich. That story isn’t true, but it could be for very little cost and everyone knows nothing beats a fresh tomato.

Over 30% of American households have their own food garden where a variety of fruits and vegetables are grown. With the increase in popularity of farmers markets and a tanking economy more and more people are starting to get in the gardening spirit. In 2009, a fifth of household gardens were watered by people who just got into gardening. A lot of that growth can be accounted for by the baby boomers reaching retirement age and a new interest in healthy, organic and locally grown food.

At the moment I do not have a place to garden, but when I move back to school in the next month or so I hope my landlord will let me. Having peppers, tomatos and lettuce fresh from the ground to my burger will be awesome. I hope this gardening trend continues and don’t be afraid to be a part of it yourself. [Via]